Chi Creek, after all, possessed profound cultivation. He immediately tried to resist being assimilated by the Creation Divine Wheel, but his consciousness soon grew hazy, and he found himself unable to use his vital energy.
The three-headed, six-armed body of the Chiming Era, renowned as the mightiest combat physique, proved almost powerless before this creation force. In moments, Chi Creek turned into a giant three-headed, six-finned fish, flopping back and forth across the ground.
At this moment in the garden, aside from Quinn Shepherd at the center of the Creation Divine Wheel, only the First Human Emperor remained unaffected by the creation power, still able to maintain self-awareness.
The garden was now filled with giant fish, sea trees, octopuses, sea anemones, sea beasts, jellyfish, and sea snakes, turning the whole place into utter chaos.
Fortunately, before Quinn began testing the Creation Divine Wheel, he had already ordered high walls to be built around the area to block its light, so the wheel’s power didn’t affect anyone outside.
"Human Emperor Quinn, that's enough!"
The First Human Emperor hurriedly called out, "This treasure is far more powerful than expected—there's no need to test it further. Be careful not to inflict irreparable damage on their Primordial Spirits!"
Inside the circular wheel, Quinn stopped urging the Creation Divine Wheel; one by one, the rings ceased spinning.
The fish scales and gills on the First Human Emperor’s body gradually faded, but the rest in the garden continued to bounce wildly about, unable to recover their true forms.
Quinn waited a moment, but the others still failed to revert to their original shapes. He mused, "This is a kind of seal—once struck by it, both flesh and Primordial Spirit are locked away, and they can't undo it themselves..."
He took out paper and pen, jotting down his thoughts.
The First Human Emperor couldn’t help but urge, "Hurry and release them! If you drag this out, their souls and Primordial Spirits will be assimilated!"
Quinn put away the paper and pen, then set the Creation Divine Wheel spinning forward. As the wheel rotated, unsealing runes shone in all directions, unraveling the various creation seals within everyone’s bodies.
Bang, bang, bang—bursts of popping sounds rang out as everyone’s bodies transformed, soon returning to normal. Even Emperor Evan looked at this heavy treasure with a face full of dread.
Chi Creek was wracked with regret, his heart twisting and bleeding as he stared at the Creation Divine Wheel, his expression shifting unpredictably. He wanted to take it back, but he also knew Quinn’s real goal from the start was this Creation Divine Wheel, not the tens of thousands of other divine weapons on the list!
Quinn would never return the Creation Divine Wheel, not even if Chi Creek offered the Chiming Heavenlock Tower in exchange!
The value of this Creation Divine Wheel already far surpassed that of the Chiming Heavenlock Tower!
"Old thief—truly an old thief..."
The old thief possessed an incredibly ruthless gaze, able to spot treasures even you didn’t know you owned. He could dig them out and buy them at a dirt-cheap price—or simply steal them outright.
Such an old thief often possessed a kind of reverse thinking that ordinary people lacked, able to keenly sense what others overlooked. A pearl might gather dust, but the thief could make it shine again.
In Chi Creek’s eyes, Quinn was exactly this kind of old thief!
He himself hadn’t noticed the greatest use of the Creation Divine Wheel, treating it only as an unsealing key. Quinn, on the other hand, thought in reverse and saw it as a lock!
In truth, Quinn was not much different from any ordinary youth—playful and mischievous. Perhaps the main difference was that his village had an old thief who never returned empty-handed.
Crippled Joe had seen all manner of treasures, and his thinking was truly unique—always able to imagine what others could not. Quinn had been taught by him since childhood, so naturally he seemed like an old thief himself.
After testing the treasure, everyone was covered in grime and went off to change clothes. Soon, Emperor Evan returned, smiling. "Teacher Chi Creek, are you planning to return to the Chiming Floating Realm? It’s only proper for me to send an envoy with you. Please wait a moment."
Chi Creek nodded, his eyes flashing. "Your Majesty, I wish to use the Chiming Heavenlock Tower to trade back for the Creation Divine Wheel—would that be possible?"
Emperor Evan laughed it off. "The weather is splendid today... Quinn, you’ve turned my imperial garden into a mess. I ought to have your head!"
Ben Coates looked expectant, but Emperor Evan only smiled, clearly in good spirits and just joking.
Ben Coates was disappointed. Chi Creek glanced at Quinn and said, "I believe young Quinn is clever and resourceful—he should accompany us to the Chiming Floating Realm."
Emperor Evan’s heart stirred and he looked at Quinn, who quickly shook his head. "No way! I’d be killed if I went!"
Emperor Evan said with a smile, "To travel to the Chiming Floating Realm, we do need an envoy who can hold the fort. If the Imperial Preceptor were here, I’d send him, but he’s busy overseeing the war in High-Emperor Heaven and can’t break away easily. Other than the Preceptor, the only one who can uphold Everpeace’s dignity is you, Quinn—even I don’t measure up."
Quinn felt a surge of satisfaction and laughed, "No chance—I’m not going."
A young eunuch beside them held out paper and pen, presenting a small booklet. Emperor Evan dipped his brush in ink and wrote in the booklet, "Even flattery won’t persuade you?"
"What is Your Majesty writing?"
Quinn leaned in and saw that the booklet listed many names—mostly court ministers, but his own as well. Next to each name were six or seven tally marks, and his had one with four strokes.
Of all the names on that page, his had the most tally marks.
Emperor Evan hurriedly closed the booklet, but Quinn, with nimble hands, stole it and flipped through. There were more than a dozen pages, and the one with the most tally marks wasn’t his—it was Her Majesty the Dowager Empress, with dozens of marks.
Emperor Evan snatched it back angrily. "Steal from me and I’ll have your head!" he said, adding another stroke to Quinn’s tally.
Quinn suddenly understood, glancing at Her Majesty the Dowager Empress nearby. "They must argue often—so the Emperor’s ‘kill’ tally for her is in the hundreds. She probably doesn’t know; if she did, the palace would be in chaos."
Emperor Evan carefully put the booklet away and said to Chi Creek, "Quinn is my right-hand man—I can’t let him leave the court lightly. May I ask, Teacher, how long will your trip to the Chiming Floating Realm take? If it’s too long, I can’t bear to let Quinn go."
Chi Creek smiled. "Rest assured, Your Majesty. I once led my people piloting a planet, drifting through the cosmos for millennia before finding our ancestral land. But if I bring only young Quinn, we can make the round trip in about a year."
Emperor Evan was surprised. "Why did it take so long before, but now it’s so quick?"
Chi Creek replied, "Before, we only had a star map marking our ancestral land, so we had to calculate star paths, search everywhere, and dodge our enemies’ pursuit. That wasted years. But now I know the way, and my Chiming palace under the sea has fast ships—much quicker than a planet. Our speed is a thousandfold greater than before."
Emperor Evan relaxed and smiled. "Teacher Chi Creek, please wait a few days. Quinn will depart with you soon."
Quinn quickly shook his head. "Your Majesty..."
Emperor Evan said sincerely, "A man should read ten thousand books and travel ten million miles. Of all my officials, only you, Quinn, can uphold the dignity of Everpeace. This mission to the Chiming Floating Realm is crucial—whether we can ally with the remaining Chiming clan depends on you. There’s no one better suited, though I know it will be dangerous and difficult. But you’re the only one with the ability."
Quinn frowned deeply and looked at Chi Creek, who only smiled. Behind him, Ben Coates made a gesture across his own neck.
The two took their leave and departed.
Once they were gone, Emperor Evan said, "Quinn, Chi Creek is not the one in charge—the real authority is the Chiming Divine Son. The alliance Chi Creek signed with Everpeace is worthless unless the Divine Son agrees. Everpeace seems stable, but it’s actually on a knife’s edge, so we must secure the alliance with the Chiming Floating Realm! When you arrive, the Divine Son will likely make things difficult for our envoy, and you’re the only one who can handle it. This is my heartfelt truth. I can’t go myself, but I’ll send Princess Lynn Ling with you—if disaster strikes, my own daughter will share your fate!"